Richard Caborn has called a summit meeting in a bid to
prevent the Premier League becoming "a billionaire's playground"
for foreign owners.
Caborn has organised a meeting involving himself, Treasury
officials, Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore and
chairman Sir Dave Richards, FA chief executive Brian Barwick and
Football League chairman Lord Mawhinney for talks on the increasing
number top-flight clubs in foreign hands.
It comes after former Thailand prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra,
who is set to take over Manchester City, was described by an MP in
Parliament as "unsavoury".
Manchester United, Liverpool and Aston Villa are now under American
ownership, while foreign investors are circling the likes Arsenal,
Birmingham and Blackburn and clubs such as Chelsea, Portsmouth,
West Ham and Fulham are in non-British hands.
The meeting will also investigate the effectiveness of the 'fit and
proper person test' for club owners and directors currently used by
the leagues and the FA.
Caborn told the House of Commons: "I think the commercialisation,
indeed foreign investment, has actually helped the Premier
League.
"It is the best in the world, watched by 1.5billion people around
the world every weekend.
"But I think we have got to make sure the Premier League does not
turn into a billionaires' playground. I think we have got to make
sure that the grassroots, the communities from which those clubs
came indeed, are respected.
"I am meeting the FA, the Premier League and the Football League
with Treasury officials (on Tuesday) to look at this question of
ownership and a number of other issues.
"We will also look at the 'fit and proper person test' and see
whether it is the right tool."
The Premier League have always insisted they have no issue with the
nationality of club owners, but will use the meeting to try to make
it easier to carry out 'fit and proper person' checks through other
government departments such as the Department for Trade and
Industry and the Foreign Office.
Caborn did not mention any clubs specifically but the whole issue
about ownership has been highlighted by the takeover of Manchester
City.
Shinawatra has been charged with offences of corruption in Thailand
and has had his assets in that country frozen. He claims that is a
politically-motivated move by the military junta that deposed
him.
Labour MP David Taylor, who represents Leicestershire NW,
questioned the effectiveness of Lord Stevens' recent inquiry into
illegal payments and asked Caborn whether the issue of foreign
takeovers needed urgent attention.
He told the House of Commons: "The Stevens inquiry into corruption
has shrunk to investigating just 17 transfer deals whilst wide
concerns about the vulnerability of clubs to takeover by
international moguls and politicians remain unaddressed.
"Will you say what protections, for instance, the Manchester City
supporters have against the attentions of the unsavoury Thaksin
Shinawatra or is it forever the fate of football fans to be fleeced
by flaky foreign financiers?"
If and when Thaksin's takeover is completed it will mean six out of
20 Premier League clubs are in foreign hands, with a number of
others including Arsenal and Blackburn provoking interest from
overseas.